Circassian Chicken in Walnut Sauce (Çerkez Tavuğu)

Çerkez Tavuğu, Circassian Chicken in Walnut Sauce, is a popular dish in my homeland Turkey (Türkiye), and people enjoy variations of it throughout the Caucasus. It’s a much-loved meze served either cold or at room temperature in İstanbul’s tavernas, restaurants, and many homes, including mine. 

My mother always served it in a buffet spread for guests, and I follow her tradition. It is a fantastic, refined dish that one can prepare ahead, so it’s perfect for entertaining.

I love the delicious layers of flavors and textures in Çerkez Tavuğu; shredded chicken mingles with a deliciously creamy (without any cream!) walnut-garlic sauce, and I finish it with a drizzle of vibrant, Aleppo pepper-infused olive oil.

This recipe makes a generous amount, so it’s great for entertaining, or you can serve it as a main course with a refreshing salad, flatbreads, or rice. It’s also a great way to use up already cooked or poached chicken, or leftover roast turkey! 

Key Ingredients

• Chicken: I use a combination of chicken breast and thighs, as it creates a more flavorful and texturally varied dish. Thigh meat is naturally more tender, with a richer flavor. Breast meat is leaner, but prone to dryness. The fat in the thighs helps keep the dish moist.
• Cilantro: Historically, we use fresh cilantro in Çerkez Tavuğu. It adds a vibrant, slightly sharp, and herbal flavor and balances the rich, creamy walnut sauce. You can also substitute flatleaf parsley. I like to use the stalks of either to flavor the stock for cooking the chicken and the leaves in the sauce, and for decoration.
• Stale bread helps thicken the walnut sauce, giving it body and a naturally creamy texture. White bread is traditional but you can use any bread, including gluten-free options. 
• Walnuts contribute to a thick, rich, creamy sauce with a lovely texture. Try to use fresh walnuts, which provide a rich, nutty taste; they are brain food and highly nutritious too. Avoid stale walnuts as they tend to have a bitter taste.
• Garlic adds a distinctive, pungent aroma to the sauce of Çerkez Tavuğu and to the overall dish. 
• Aleppo Pepper: Pul biber, the red pepper flakes, also known Aleppo pepper, season the walnut sauce, and the finishing oil.
• Extra virgin olive oil is the base for the vibrant, spiced finishing oil. It adds a rich aroma and an appealing red colour, providing a striking contrast to the pale walnut sauce. 

How to Make Circassian Chicken

• Poach the chicken. Trim excess fat from 1 pound chicken breasts and 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs, and then cut into large (2-inch) chunks. Place the chicken, 1 roughly chopped medium onion, and the stalks from 1 small bunch cilantro or parsley in a large, heavy-bottomed pot. Add 5 cups water to the pan, season with a big pinch of salt and freshly-ground black pepper (about 1/2 teaspoon each). Cover and bring to a boil. Then reduce the heat, partially cover, and simmer for 25 to 30 minutes or until the chicken is fully cooked, skimming off any scum that forms on the surface with a slotted spoon. 
• Shred the chicken. Lift out the chicken onto a large plate and set aside to cool, keeping the cooking liquid. When the chicken is cool enough to handle, shred it into thin strips and place in a deep serving dish.
• Make the sauce. Place 4 slices stale white bread (or your choice of bread, including gluten-free) in a shallow dish and soak in 2 ladlefuls of the chicken cooking liquid. Once fully soaked, squeeze out the excess liquid and crumble the bread into a food processor or blender. Add 1 3/4 cups shelled walnuts, 3 coarsely chopped garlic cloves, and 1/2 teaspoon Aleppo pepper, and season with a big pinch each salt and black pepper. Pulse to combine.
• Adjust the texture. Drizzle in 1 1/2 cups (340 ml) of the cooking liquid and puree to form a loose, pourable, creamy sauce. Take care not to over-process; you want to retain some texture of the walnuts. Chop the cilantro or parsley leaves. Set aside a small amount for garnish and stir the rest into the sauce. Check and adjust the seasoning, if necessary.
• Combine. Add the sauce to the chicken in the serving dish and combine. 
• Make the Aleppo Pepper Oil. When ready to serve, warm 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil in a small saucepan over low heat and add 1 teaspoon Aleppo pepper. Stir gently for 40 to 45 seconds and set aside. 
• Finish and serve. Sprinkle the reserved chopped cilantro or parsley over the chicken, along with additional chopped walnuts. Drizzle with the warm infused oil on top.

Make it Your Own

• Use other cooked meat: Chicken is traditional but the delicious walnut sauce is lovely with other cooked meat too. I especially love it combined with leftover turkey meat. I also love this nutty sauce with braised vegetables too. 
• Use a different nut: Though not traditional, pecan nuts or hazelnuts may offer good substitutions. You may also like to slightly dry roast the nuts to revive their flavor.
• Use paprika instead: The historical, original recipe for Circassian chicken uses sweet paprika for the infused oil for the finished dish, whereas Turkish Çerkez Tavuğu uses Aleppo pepper. If you don’t have Aleppo pepper, you can substitute any sweet or mild paprika, and add some freshly ground black pepper to give it some heat. 

Perfect Pairings

• Serve in a meze spread. This lovely, creamy Çerkez Tavuğu is fabulous for entertaining, as you can prep ahead, and serve at room temperature or cold as part of a buffet or a spread with Mercimek Köftesi (Turkish Lentil Mezze), the spicy tomato salad Ezme, and Bean Salad with Tahini and Eggs (Tahinli Fasulye Piyazı).
• Serve as a main course: I also like to serve Çerkez Tavuğu as a main course, along with flatbreads or rice pilaf, cucumber or turnip pickles, and a chopped tomato and cucumber salad. 
• As a sandwich filling: Leftover Circassian chicken makes a wonderful filling for sandwiches and wraps.